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Shopping

A retailer or shop is a business that presents a selection of goods or services and offers to sell them to customers for money or other goods. Shopping is an activity in which a customer browses the available goods or services presented by one or more retailers with the intent to purchase a suitable selection of them. In some contexts it may be considered a leisure activity as well as an economic one.

The shopping experience can range from "delightful" to "terrible," based on a variety of factors including how the customer is treated, convenience, and mood.

The shopping experience can also be influenced by other shoppers. For example, research from a field experiment found that male and female shoppers who were accidentally touched from behind by other shoppers left a store earlier than people who had not been touched and evaluated brands more negatively, resulting in the Accidental Interpersonal Touch effect.

"Window shopping" is browsing with no intent to purchase, either as a...

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Ladies and gentlemen, presenting the winner of Star Wars item of the week: R2-D2 shoes for ladies. These beauties, featuring R2s clinging to their heels and a blinking R2-like front panel up on the foot, showed up Wednesday on Instructables -- a site...

Finding the right gift during the holiday season requires some challenging decisions, but connected consumers are taking advantage of their devices to help them shop. Nearly six in ten cell owners used their phone in a physical store to make purchasi...

Although moms may regulate cellphone use for their kids, they definitely love spending one-on-one time with their own smartphones. An infographic from pregnancy app BabyBump shows that 93% of moms spent more time shopping on their cellphone in 2012 t...

Following a test-piloting period over the holidays, Target has agreed to match prices with Amazon, Walmart.com, BestBuy.com, Toysrus.com and a handful of other online retailers year-round. In-store shoppers can secure price matches at the Guest Servi...

If you've got gift cards to burn or money to spend, now might be a good time to make your move. A number of retailers are offering deep discounts the day after Christmas. Everything from laptops to game consoles, e-readers and TVs are marked down on ...

Consumers are getting better at squeezing every last penny in value out of the gift cards they receive as holiday presents, new research shows. And a pretty penny that is, indeed. The savings from reduced spillage, the amount of value left on a gift ...

Christmas is next week. It's not time to freak out yet — but it's almost time to get really nervous. Let's not get to that point. In fact, there's still time to take care of the rest of your shopping online. Scroll through the gallery above for 12 re...

If you still haven't found that perfect gift, take note: The final shopping holiday of the season is upon us. Now in its fifth year, Free Shipping Day gives you the chance to browse thousands of online retailers offering free shipping on unique deals...

You can wear novelty earrings, a flashing tie or even funny socks, but nothing says "I'm getting in the holiday spirit" like a hideously ugly Christmas sweater. We have found 10 examples of special sweaters, and they are so bad they're good. From fri...

The great thing about online shopping is that you can take your time. But with the launch of timed deal websites like Groupon in late 2008 and LivingSocial in 2009, even online consumers have to act fast if they want to benefit from sales. SEE ALSO: ...

Amazon is so packed with deals today, it was hard to stop at 15. If you haven't yet, take advantage of Cyber Monday and boogie on over to <a href="http://www.mashable.com/follow/topics/amazon">Amazon</a> to find the perfect gift for anyone you know.

For the Apple fans in your life, iPhone accessories make fantastic gifts. And with some of the huge discounts available on Cyber Monday, you might want to double your order and keep one for yourself. SEE ALSO: 10 Great Cyber Monday Deals to Snag Righ...

It's time to return to work after the holiday, and for many that means taking a break to shop for holiday deals. Cyber Monday is traditionally the first workday after the Black Friday shopping rush, and online retails hope to capitalize on people who...

Seven years ago, Cyber Monday was established as the online counterpart to Black Friday, a day when Internet retailers would band together to lure holiday shoppers to web storefronts through steep discounts, free shipping and other promotions. So far...

Black Friday is known for its bargains. Just because something is on sale, however, doesn’t mean that you’re getting the best price possible. Luckily, there are a number of apps out there that can help you make an informed purchasing decision. SEE AL...

By now, we've all heard the Black Friday horror stories. The cast of characters is always the same: stampeding shoppers, pushy patrons and bellicose bargain-hunters. Along with great deals, the post-Thanksgiving shopping "holiday" can bring out consu...

If you're an iPhone owner looking for some brilliant Black Friday deals this Thanksgiving, we can help you out. We've found nine tasty discounts on cases, speakers and other peripherals. SEE ALSO: How to Avoid These Top 5 Black Friday Traps Take a lo...

Are you prepared for Black Friday? A new survey released by BFAds.net, a site that lists Black Friday deals in real-time, shows that 51.7% of shoppers said they research Black Friday sales online before they happen; about 36% said they still enjoy pe...

Black Friday is not quite upon us, but online Amazon has been offering deals all week. If you want to keep track of special offers from the web retailer you can sign up for the "Daily Deals" email, check out the "Gold Box" for "Lightning Deals" and t...

Privacy may be a big concern for online users, but it takes a backseat when it comes to shopping online. Nearly two-thirds of online shoppers say they would trade increased privacy for more personalized offers from retailers, according to Accenture's...

Black Friday comes once a year and for most of us, once is enough. The sleep-sucking mega shopping day has morphed into a major shopping weekend. With the growing popularity of Cyber Monday, and brick-and-mortar retailers clamoring for a piece of the...

This year Walmart is starting Black Friday on Thursday, so you can get an early start on your holiday tech savings. You'll need to gobble up your Thanksgiving dinner early and get over to Walmart; the company is kicking off in-store deals at 8 p.m. l...

PayPal is the faster, safer way to pay and get paid -- online, via mobile and in store. For more information about BrandSpeak, click here. The holiday gift-giving season is around the corner. It's a time to splurge on items for your family and friend...

Google has rolled out a slew of new shopping features leading into the holiday buying season, the latest in a series of changes to its Google Shopping product, which switched from an organic search to a paid search model in October. Perhaps the most ...

Everyone loves a good bargain -- and when you have a long list of people to buy gifts for this holiday season, it'll feel even more rewarding to nab those amazing deals. When you're on-the-go and don't have time to browse online or are simply overwhe...

Shop It To Me, which bills itself as a personal shopper for discounted clothing, is launching an online tool Monday designed to help you track sales, and find clothes and accessories in your budget. The tool, dubbed "Threads," allows you to create hi...

Black Friday is less than two weeks away. What began as a single shopping day following Thanksgiving Thursday, has turned into a shopping marathon that can begin shortly after the traditional feast ends and last through the following week. Myths have...

Facebook has rescheduled its Facebook Gifts event in New York City. The event was originally scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 1, but was canceled in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. On Monday, Facebook updated its iOS app, adding the ability to send real-wor...

The holiday season is almost upon us and, since the economy hasn't fully recovered, consumers remain careful and thoughtful about how they're spending money. There are a lot of great deals out there, but we know you don't have the time to sift throug...

People don't just turn on their BBQs for Labor Day -- they also switch on their smartphones and tablets, recent data from Google shows. Google says it has seen a consistent spike in mobile searches on holidays over the past year, and an even more p...

In a bid to capture the first rush of holiday shoppers, Amazon has opened an online store for Black Friday offers 22 days before the national shopping event is scheduled to take place. Many online retailers won't post their offers until Cyber Monday,...

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